On a failed attempt to try make it to snowy Crater Lake because of very bad weather, we decided to backpack in and camp around Diamond Lake instead. It was definitely not as beautiful as Crater Lake would have been, but it was still awesome to snowshoe in and explore the area in the deep snow. Our hike in was a very wet one, with about 6 inches of snow accumulating our first night and another 6 inches the following day. We had a great time still even with the snow and dug out a nice kitchen area to stay dry while cooking and eating. The heavy snowfall definitely built up quickly on the tent and had to be frequently hit off to keep it from getting too heavy.

On our last day there, we woke up to beautiful blue sky and great visibility of Mt Thielsen, Mt Bailey and even the rim of Crater Lake. Unfortunately the nice weather didn’t stick around too long though and by the time we had hiked the few miles around the snowy lake back to our car it was getting stormy again. It was nice to be able to get out and explore the area in the quiet beauty of the winter. Hopefully we can get down to Crater Lake again and actually be able to make in!